President Barack Obama visited Seattle on Friday in an attempt to gather money for the Democrats through a local fundraising taking place in the area. The president was scheduled as well for a speech on an event for Governor Jay Inslee.

Air Force One arrived on Friday afternoon at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, while the president was soon able to fulfill his commitment with Gov. Inslee at the Washington State Convention Center, as reported by Seattle Pi.

President Barack Obama salutes the crowds of supporters on his visit to Seattle earlier this week. Image Credit: Seattle Times
President Barack Obama salutes the crowds of supporters on his visit to Seattle earlier this week. Image Credit: Seattle Times

Later, Obama was expected to attend a gathering to raise money for the Democratic Congressional Committee. Among the people who welcomed the president at the airport, were Gov. Inslee, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray and Brian Cladoosby, president of the National Congress of American Indians.

Protesters also made an appearance at the airport, which included former Seattle Mayor Mike McGin, who objects to crude oil shipments on the region’s railways. Obama’s support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership was also a subject for protesters outside his hotel.

A new national monument

On Friday as well, the president designated a new national monument at the Stonewall Uprising site in New York City to honor the LGBT equality movement, according to a press release by The White House.

The brand new “Stonewall National Monument” aims to protect the area where, on June 28, 1969, a community’s uprising in response to a police raid sparked the modern LGBT civil rights movement in the United States. The monument would encompass Christopher Park, the Stonewall Inn and the surrounding streets and sidewalks. Stonewall Inn was a typical occurrence at gay bars in the 1960s, as reported by CNN.

“I am designating the Stonewall National Monument as the newest addition to America’s National Park System. Stonewall will be our first national monument to tell the story of the struggle for LGBT rights,” the president said. “I believe our national parks should reflect the full story of our country, the richness and diversity and uniquely American spirit that has always defined us. That we are stronger together. That out of many, we are one.”

By honoring the history and accomplishment of the movement for LGBT equality, the latest designation will be a historic moment in the effort toward a more inclusive National Park System, the statement from the White House added.

The president is also designated early this year a monument that looked to highlight the American’s fight for women’s equality. Obama designated the Belmont-Paul Women’s Equality National Monument in April, a site that has been central to the struggle for women’s equality for over a century and that saw many historical moments in its streets.

According to Page Harrington, Executive Director at the White House, the designation will preserve an extensive archival collection, which documents the history of the movement to secure women’s suffrage and equal rights in the U.S. and the world.

Source: The White House